Windows Live Messenger Alert Problems

I'm finding that alerts are only working intermittently in WLM. Sometimes I get mail and an alert pops up with a sound, sometimes not. Same when people sign in and when they type a message. Sometimes it works and alerts me, sometimes it doesn't.

If it's any help I uninstalled the first Non Beta build of Windows Live Messenger and reinstalled it. That didn't solve the problem. Since then I have installed the second Non Beta version ie version 8.0.0792.00. At no point did I uninstall the Windows Live Sign In Assistant.

When I come to look in my program files I see a file called MSN Messenger and two other files called MSN Messenger (2) and MSN Messenger (3). Both (2) and (3) appear to contain sound files but WLM appears to get its sounds from the first file ie MSN Messenger. Certainly that appears to be the case when I checked in Tools > Sounds And Alerts.

Also the problem appears to be intermittent, with no pattern to it. It may or may not be relevant but Offline Messages sometimes bounce too. It used to be possible to send Offline Messages to people who did not have WLM, now MSN, in a seperate reply about bouncing messages, insist that the recipient also has to have WLM. Fair enough, but some of the people my messages are sent to and subsequently bounce back from (it says "message can not be delivered to all recipients" in that horrid brown text) DO have WLM!!!

All in all it's nowhere near as reliable as MSN Messenger V 7.5. I almost wish I'd stuck to that!

I should say that my PC is spyware and virus free and other programs and internet browsing work fine. It's an basic PC, three years old and I accept that it's coming to the stage now where it's due for replacement, I bought it to learn on and it has only 256 MB of RAM, but I just use it for web browsing, e mails, playing music and IM really, so WLM should work properly as my PC is not overstretched.

I've given as much information as I can, I hope you guys can help me out. Oh by the way, I have asked MSN for help and their response was..."Alan, in order to receive alerts when contacts come online, you receive a message etc. you have to turn the alerts on"..... Brilliant! A masterstroke! Why didn't I think of that?! Please excuse my sarcasm. I may not be a techie but even I can work out the sounds have to be turned on! So that was useless really.

I'm a first time poster, I'm not a "techie", I can do the basics but wouldn't dream of messing around in registries or taking motherboards to bits! So I'm hoping you guys can help with the alerts issue and maybe even the bouncing messages.

Thanks

Alan